Abstract
Anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR) autoantibodies are a marker of acquired myasthenia gravis (MG). Some of these antibodies cause muscle weakness. Striational autoantibodies (Str Ab) also are a marker of MG. They are most prevalent in older patients and patients with thymoma. Here we describe a reproducible enzyme immunoassay (AChR-EIA) for detecting antibodies reactive with human muscle AChR, using antigens concentrated on plastic by prior sequential application of a biotinylated carrier, avidin, and biotinylated monoclonal IgG against AChR. There was significant correlation between values for antibodies assayed by AChR-EIA and by immunoprecipitation of AChR complexed with 125I-α-bungarotoxin. Unexpectedly, AChR-EIA and StrAb values also were significantly correlated. Further studies revealed a significant and unprecedented correlation for StrAb and AChR precipitating antibodies. A plausible explanation for these findings is that some StrAb may react with cytoskeletal proteins that associate and copurify with AChR. The AChR-EIA offers a nonradioactive method for detecting two autoantibodies that are relatively restricted to patients with acquired MG.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 573-578 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Neurology |
Volume | 43 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 1993 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Clinical Neurology